U.S. President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, was indicted on Thursday on federal firearms charges after a planned plea deal collapsed.

Hunter Biden, 53, was accused of concealing his drug use during a gun purchase in October 2018, according to the indictment filed in a federal court in Delaware.

Three criminal counts of charges are related to Hunter Biden's alleged false statements in the purchase of a firearm and illegal gun possession. He will face up to 25 years in prison if convicted.

The new charges against Hunter Biden brought by recently elevated U.S. Special Counsel David Weiss say nothing about any violations of U.S. tax law. A prior deal under which Hunter Biden would have pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and enroll in a program to avoid prosecution on the gun charge collapsed in a stunning turn in a July hearing.

Hunter Biden has also been under investigation for his foreign business dealings.

The charges ensure that courtroom drama will play an outsized role in the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign as Joe Biden, 80, seeks reelection in a likely rematch with his Republican predecessor Donald Trump, 77, who faces four upcoming criminal trials of his own.

U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Tuesday that the House Oversight Committee's investigation had found a "culture of corruption" around the Biden family as Republicans probed the business dealings of Hunter Biden, from before the president took office in 2021.

"These are allegations of abuse of power, obstruction and corruption, and they warrant further investigation by the House of Representatives," McCarthy said, adding that he had directed House committees to open a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden. 

"As expected, prosecutors filed charges today that they deemed were not warranted just six weeks ago following a five-year investigation into this case," Hunter Biden attorney Abbe Lowell said in a statement. "The evidence in this matter has not changed in the last six weeks, but the law has and so has MAGA Republicans' improper and partisan interference in this process."

Special counsel status

Weiss was elevated to special counsel status in August after investigating Hunter Biden's business dealings for years as the U.S. attorney in the Democratic president's home state of Delaware. Weiss was originally nominated by Trump.

The younger Biden has been the focus of unrelenting attacks by Trump and his Republican allies. Hunter Biden has worked as a lobbyist, lawyer, investment banker and artist, and has publicly detailed his struggles with substance abuse.

While Republican lawmakers have collected testimony that Joe Biden at times joined calls with his son's business associates, they have yet to produce evidence that the president personally benefited.

"Today's charges against Hunter Biden are a very small start, but unless U.S. Attorney Weiss investigates everyone involved in the fraud schemes and influence peddling, it will be clear President Biden's DOJ is protecting Hunter Biden and the big guy," said Republican Representative James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, one of the three committees leading the impeachment inquiry kicked off this week.

(With input from agencies)